Sunday, November 01, 2009

Indian Eggplant Fritters

A lone eggplant wandered its way into my kitchen, and knowing I have a busy week ahead of me, I decided to use it up as soon as possible and cook something tasty with it. I immediately grabbed my newest "go-to" cookbook, 1000 Vegan Recipes, that I reviewed last week. Although there were a few tasty eggplant recipes, I quickly settled on the eggplant fritters, especially since everything was already stocked in my kitchen.

What a quick and tasty recipe to make. And what I love about it is that I'm already thinking of a zillion variations. I made a few changes of my own, but kept pretty true to the original recipe. I think next time, I may try using zucchini instead of eggplant, and then try a potato variation. I'm also thinking these would be lovely to make ahead of time and store in the freezer, making them just perfect for a tasty appetizer for unexpected guests.

Indian Eggplant Fritters

Indian Eggplant Fritters

1 small eggplant, peeled and diced (this was about 3 cups for me)
1/2 c water
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp chili-garlic sauce
1 tbsp minced fresh mint
1/2 c flour
1 1/2 tsp coriander
3/4 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

In a large saucepan, combine the eggplant, water, and lemon juice. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, and cook until the eggplant is very soft, about 10 minutes. Drain the eggplant, pressing out excess liquid, and place in a small bowl. Add chili sauce and mint, and mix well.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, coriander, cumin, baking powder, and salt. Add to the eggplant mixture and toss to combine.
In a large skillet, heat a thin layer of oil over medium-high heat. Add the eggplant mixture, a tablespoon at a time, adding as many fritters as you can without crowding. Fry, turning as needed, until golden brown all over, 2-3 minutes per side.

10 comments:

Liz said...

Mmm, this is making me want some fried food right now. Is chili-garlic sauce more than just chili peppers and crushed garlic?

Jenn/CinnamonQuill said...

These look wonderful! And I've never heard of that cookbook; I'll have to check it out!

Foodfreak said...

I love Indian eggplant fritters, but I'd always opt for besan (chickpea flour) instead of regular flour, the taste is so much better.

Shaheen said...

My mother would make us these when I was a child, it was the only way me and my younger siblings woudl eat aubergine. These looks great!

kitblue said...

I love that these are not deep fried.

Liz - my chili garlic sauce also has sugar, rice vinegar, modified corn starch (yuck) and citric acid. So I think if you added some rice vinegar to chilis and garlic you would have it.

Anonymous said...

I may use both eggplant and zucchini to make this. It sounds really delicious.

saheda said...

i just wanted to know if you add water to the flour mixture?

saheda said...

i just wanted to know if you add water to the flour mixture?

Anonymous said...

These were awesome! My whole family loved them and they were fast and easy to make. I didn't use the chili-garlic sauce but put in a little grated garlic. Thank you!!!

Anonymous said...

Made these. Didn't change a thing. They were delicious and eaten far too quickly :) Thanks for a great recipe.